From supermodels showing their stretch marks to a federal investigation probing the lack of opportunity for female directors, the restrictions and pressures placed on women in entertainment are getting some long-overdue focus. But when a young star like Ashley Benson mentions that she was told she wasn’t thin enough for a role, you know we still have a long way to go before the issues facing women in Hollywood go away.
“I was just told I was too fat for a part,” Benson said recently in Ocean Drive magazine. “I’m a size 2! I cried for 30 minutes, but then you have to let it roll off your shoulders or it could cause a serious eating disorder.”
Benson, star of ABC Family’s number-one drama, Pretty Little Liars, and co-star of Spring Breakers, has done her best to stay grounded. “A lot of people in this industry hear they need to lose weight more times than they should. It does make you stronger, though. Because if you let that affect you, you can’t be in this industry—you’d go crazy.”
Benson is part of a growing wave of young stars determined to show their flawed, real selves and step out from behind the unrealistic, photoshopped imagery that the media creates. “I hate to think that girls are like, ‘She’s so skinny! Her skin is so perfect!’ I have pimples just like they do.” To prove her point, Benson, who has more than 10 million Instagram followers, posted a selfie, her face spotted with acne cream. “Because I wanted to show people I’m not perfect—no one is.”
(Via Ocean Drive)
